David Bowie Cover of the Week: Sing It Live’s “Modern Love”

Bowie’s version of “Modern Love” (originally released in 1983) is enjoying renewed attention. The song recently re-entered the British charts thanks to its inclusion on the soundtrack of the latest Bridget Jones film, Mad About the Boy. In this context, my Cover of the Week selection is Sing It Live’s* largely faithful rendition of the song offering a timely homage to Bowie’s enduring hit.

Since I selected this as “cover of the week,” I obviously like this video, however I have written before about “Modern Love” and am going to focus most of the rest of this post on Sing It Live and its founder, Darren Mullan. I don’t have experience with Mullan or the project, so what follows is a summary of information I was able to gather from online sources:

Mullan is co-founder and original producer of the Hindley Street Country Club, a popular Australian cover band. A seasoned performer and sound engineer, known online as ProducerNerd, Mullan’s focus is capturing live musical performances. With Sing It Live, he operates out of his basement studio in South Australia, teaming up with talented local musicians to deliver weekly high-quality live cover videos. This project celebrates classic songs through real-time studio performances rather than multi-track studio concoctions, staying true to the “live” spirit.

In the video performance (embedded in this post), the Sing It Live band delivers “Modern Love” through a faithful and energetic arrangement. Notably, Darren Mullan himself handles lead vocals on this track (wearing what appears to be a Blackstar shirt), reflecting his dual role as producer and performer. He’s backed by a full ensemble: guitars, bass, drums, and keyboards, plus a two-saxophone horn section to recreate Bowie’s original brass hooks. Multiple band members contribute backing vocals, ensuring the song’s call-and-response refrains are fully realized live. The arrangement closely follows Bowie’s upbeat Let’s Dance-era groove, complete with a saxophone solo and tight rhythm section. This isn’t a radical reinterpretation of the song, but it showcases the band’s polished musicianship.

This cover was produced live in one session by Mullan in his basement studio. The video was filmed with a minimalist setup, highlighting the project’s focus on content over flashy production. The result balances technical fidelity with the energy of a group of musicians playing together in the moment.

For more on Sing it Live visit their website HERE.

* I have seen the band’s name stylized as “Singit Live” but I am going with “Sing It Live” because that’s how it appears on the YouTube video and in the band’s logo.